U.S. Department of State: polls in Armenia “well administered”

February 20, 2013 - 14:27 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net - Presidential elections in Armenia were generally well administered and characterized by a respect for fundamental freedoms, the spokesperson of the U.S. Department of State said.

“According to the preliminary results from the Central Election Commission, incumbent President Sargsyan has won the elections by 58.64 percent. We support the conclusions of the OSCE ODIHR observer mission in their preliminary conclusions that the elections were generally well administered and characterized by a respect for fundamental freedoms, including those of assembly and expression,” Victoria Nuland said.

“ODIHR was concerned about some lack of impartiality on the part of public administration officials and the misuse of administrative resources that resulted in a blurred distinction between the activities of the state and those of the ruling party. There was some undue interference in the process, including by proxies representing the incumbent. And there were some serious violations that obviously need to be investigated, as ODIHR has called for,” she noted.